Denmark vs Switzerland. Who will be stronger in the battle of the "dark horses" of the world championship?

The two most progressive European teams, Denmark and Switzerland, will play a face-to-face match on May 15 as part of the group stage of the Ice Hockey World Championship 2022. The meeting will be held at the Helsinki Ice Palace.

• Expert Predictions Analysis
• Denmark vs Switzerland facts
• ODDs
• Game Totals Prediction

Our Expert Predictions & Analysis on Denmark vs Switzerland

Denmark

The Danish team currently occupies 10th place in the IIHF international ranking, which is its best result in 73 years of existence. To some extent, this breakthrough was facilitated by the results of the Danes at the February Olympics, where the Heinz Ehlers team reached the quarterfinals, losing as a result to the Russian team with a score of 1-3. Getting into the top eight remains the best result of the Danes at the World Championships, in 2010 and 2016 the Scandinavians reached the quarterfinals, where they eventually completed their tournament path.

Compared to the February Olympics, the composition of the Danish national team has been strengthened by two hockey players from across the ocean. The main star of Danish hockey, Winnipeg forward Nikolai Ehlers, had an excellent season in the NHL, scoring 55 points for performance (28 + 27). Young forward Joachim Blikfeld, owned by San Jose, spent the season in the AHL, but is also able to significantly strengthen the team. In anticipation of the start of the World Cup, the Danish team played 8 friendly matches, winning only three victories in them (twice over Great Britain 2-0 and 8-0 and over neighbors from Norway 2-0). In matches with more skillful Finns and Swedes, the Danish team did not look the best, losing twice to each of the opponents.

Switzerland

Like the Danes, the Swiss national team for the last decade can safely bring itself into an asset. Twice, in 2013 and 2018, the Swiss team reached the final of the World Cup, where both times they lost to the Swedes - 1:5 and 2:3. Thanks to this progress, the Swiss national team is currently in sixth position in the international rankings of the IIHF. The last Olympic Games the Swiss team did not have in the best way, having completed its campaign for medals already at the quarter-final stage. The offenders were the future Olympic champions - the Finnish team, who beat the Swiss with a score of 5-1.

For the upcoming World Championship in Finland, the Swiss are bringing a fairly serious squad, where there was a place for seven hockey players from the NHL at once. The coaching staff of the national team waited until the last moment for the arrival of Nashville defender Roman Yozi, but one of the best representatives of his role in the NHL refused to participate in the championship, citing family circumstances. On the eve of the start of the World Championship, the Swiss team took part in the Swedish Hockey Games, where they finished in third place, beating the Finns 3-2 and twice losing to the Swedes 2-3 and the Czechs 0-3.

Statistics

The last meeting of these rivals is dated February of this year, when, in the framework of the group stage of the Olympiad, the Danes quite unexpectedly beat a more titled opponent with a score of 5-3. If we take specifically the rivalry within the World Championships, then here in the 21st century the Swiss have a serious advantage - six matches, six wins, with a goal difference of 25-8.

ODDs from download 1xbet

The bookmaker is unequivocally on the side of the Swiss national team, having set the odds of 1.50 for the possible success of Patrick Fischer's wards, while the victory of the Danes is estimated at 5.6. The option with a draw at the end of regular time can be taken as 5. As for the expected performance, the following quotes are offered here: Total Over (4.5) - 1.67, Total Under (4.5) - 2.21. Install the 1xbet app and place a bet on the favorite!

Game Totals Prediction

Despite the defeat in the first match, Metallurg did not look doomed in attack, creating many scoring chances. To some extent, the owners were let down by the implementation - somewhere the army team was rescued by Fedotov, somewhere his own inaccuracy in the final phase of the attacks did not allow Metallurg to score more than once. Going to Moscow, losing 0-2 is not the best option, so we expect from Metallurg hockey players no less active game in attack. Our forecast is Metallurg's Individual Total over 2.5 with odds of 2.14.